Zometa reduces risk of Breast Cancer recurrence in post-menopausal patients

A Phase III trial investigating the use of Zometa (zoledronic acid), from Novartis, to aid chemotherapy for Breast Cancer has found a significant benefit for post-menopausal women. The AZURE trial recruited 3,360 patients with stage II/III breast cancer and an interim analysis indicated that patients were seeing no clinical benefit from treatment with Zometa so the data were released for more detailed scrutiny. This confirmed the drug's lack of impact, apart from in a sub-set of women who had undergone menopause five or more years previously. Here, the overall survival rate was 85% compared to 79% for women who did not receive Zometa. The effect was independent of the characteristics of the disease as shown by the stage of the tumour, oestrogen receptor status, and lymph node involvement. The data has been presented at the European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress 2011 and published in the New England Journal of Medicine (volume 365, issue 15. doi: 10.1056/nejmoa1105195)